Creating the New World

A simplified explanation of the strategy to transform our society from a greedy plutocracy to a cooperative democracy, from our destructive path to a sustainable future, is that there are two simultaneous tracks ‚Äď protest what we do not like and build what we want. We call this ‚ÄúStop the Machine-Create a New World.‚ÄĚ This weekly report usually focuses on the protest part of the resistance movement, but this week we will focus more on the people who are working to create the world we want to see.

It is not that there are no protest actions to report on. There continues to be a lot going on. Some examples among many that you will find at PopularResistance.org, include:

It was a busy week. The under-reported revolts against the corrupt economy and dysfunctional government continue and grow.

Building the World We Want

An important component of resistance is building systems based upon our desired values and principles to replace the current dysfunctional systems. This is a powerful and positive way for communities to work together to solve local problems and meet their basic needs. People around the world are engaged in this constructive resistance. We will share some of the most recent efforts to build the world we want.

We are inspired by the human potential to create, even in dire economic circumstances, illustrated by this story of children from a slum dwelling in Paraguay. Out of the trash in the landfill their community is built upon, they created the ‚ÄúLandfill Harmonic Orchestra.‚ÄĚ Thisamazing video tells their story. There is no question that part of building the world we want to see includes music, arts and culture.

Of course, at the root of many problems in the United States is the economy. We are experiencing in the US what our government has forced onto poorer nations for decades, the accelerated selling off of our resources andprivatization of government services. This, combined with de-funding of public institutions, is creating greater wealth for a few while the rest of us struggle to make ends meet.

The looting class believes that there is no threat of democracy breaking out when people are poor and focused on meeting their basic needs. But economic democracy is quietly expanding throughout the United States. We are two of the organizers of the Economic Democracy Conference which is part of the Democracy Convention being held in Madison, WI beginning this August 7.

Two years ago when we organized a similar conference, economic democracy was beginning to take root in the U.S. Since then, the movement has grown rapidly, under the radar of the corporate media. One-third of the US public is now a member of some type of cooperative, including credit unions.

This year the Economic Democracy Conference will include 15 sessions. Some will focus on big picture topics such as what the new economy looks like and discussions of money and debt, while others will focus on the building blocks of the new economy, cooperatives, complementary currencies, public banks, affordable housing, local investment networks and other ways to finance local businesses and transitioning to municipal renewable energy. You can register here.

This week, there were a number of economic democracy projects in the news. In Seattle a group, Community Sourced Capital, formed to help people invest in their local community. We know the value of shopping locally, now people are figuring out ways to invest locally to build their communities and avoid Wall Street.

Also, some members of the Occupy Movement are launching the Occupy Money Cooperative. Their first product will be the Occupy Money Card, a pre-paid debit card without the costs of a regular bank account which they describe as a ‚Äúbank on a card.‚ÄĚ Forbes took notice of the Money Cooperative, finding it ironic that Occupy would set up a bank. We see it as just the opposite. More alternatives to Wall Street banks are needed and this is one of many models being developed.

In Minneapolis, people have solved one of the big problems caused by the Wall Street banks ‚Äď the housing crisis. They created an ‚Äúeviction free zone,‚ÄĚ as the world they want to see does not include throwing families onto the street. Their tactics include pressuring banks, blocking evictions (as with this example), occupying foreclosed homes and refurbishing homes. This kind of mutual support and local solidarity also builds community. The City of Richmond, CA became the first to use itspower of eminent domain to seize underwater homes facing foreclosure and return them to the homeowners with reduced mortgage payments.

And, an innovative approach to transit that began in Rochester, NY has now moved to Detroit. The approach seeks to expand public transit without increasing fares or taxes by improving the ‚Äėtransit experience,‚Äô rewarding drivers for performance and partnering with schools, hospitals and housing developments to supplement funding.

Strike Debt Bay Area is working to reverse the privatization of public services ‚Äď in this case, the US Post Office. Their approach is education, including a teach-in on privatization tactics used by the 1%, the dangers of privatization to individuals and public institutions, and the threats to civil liberties posed by the privatization of the United States Postal Service. Others are focused on ways the Post Office can expand and provide new services.

A lot of excellent work is being done to preserve water and healthy food. People are taking effective steps to stop corporations like Monsanto. This November there will be a vote in Washington State requiring labeling of GMO foods. If it succeeds, and it is leading right now, it could spur a national change that will allow people to finally know whether a product contains GMOs or not. On a related front, people are fighting for their right to buy directly from farmers,despite regulators‚Äô efforts to curtail the practice. And many individuals and municipalities are using a variety of techniques to preserve water and use it more efficiently.

As more Americans are joining efforts to stop the Trans-Pacific Partnership and its Atlantic trade cousin through groups like Flush The TPP, a new creative approach to trade came up this week that others may want to emulate. The Fair Deal Coalition concerned with our digital future, has launched an open source ‚Äúnegotiation‚ÄĚ of trade designed to give people what they want. They seek to involve people and businesses in developing the future, rather than the secret approach of the Obama administration.

This is just a brief review of what is occurring to build the new world we want. Much more is happening. In How to Design the World for Happiness, many more examples are described. Jay Walljasper writes in the introduction:

‚ÄúWe recognized it was up to us to make the neighborhood safer, cleaner, more inclusive, interesting, and enjoyable.‚Ä¶ Experiencing firsthand the collaborative capacity of everyday people to shape their own community has influenced me deeply as a writer, speaker, and consultant‚Ä¶. The articles gathered here explore the wide horizons of what‚Äôs possible in communities everywhere.‚ÄĚ

While there is a lot we can do as individuals, there is even more we can do when we build community and when we build on the experiences of others. The world we want to see is literally being built every day by uncounted numbers of us. There is no need to wait, the future is ours if we make it.

This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.

Creating the New World

A simplified explanation of the strategy to transform our society from a greedy plutocracy to a cooperative democracy, from our destructive path to a sustainable future, is that there are two simultaneous tracks ‚Äď protest what we do not like and build what we want. We call this ‚ÄúStop the Machine-Create a New World.‚ÄĚ This weekly report usually focuses on the protest part of the resistance movement, but this week we will focus more on the people who are working to create the world we want to see.

It is not that there are no protest actions to report on. There continues to be a lot going on. Some examples among many that you will find at PopularResistance.org, include:

It was a busy week. The under-reported revolts against the corrupt economy and dysfunctional government continue and grow.

Building the World We Want

An important component of resistance is building systems based upon our desired values and principles to replace the current dysfunctional systems. This is a powerful and positive way for communities to work together to solve local problems and meet their basic needs. People around the world are engaged in this constructive resistance. We will share some of the most recent efforts to build the world we want.

We are inspired by the human potential to create, even in dire economic circumstances, illustrated by this story of children from a slum dwelling in Paraguay. Out of the trash in the landfill their community is built upon, they created the ‚ÄúLandfill Harmonic Orchestra.‚ÄĚ Thisamazing video tells their story. There is no question that part of building the world we want to see includes music, arts and culture.

Of course, at the root of many problems in the United States is the economy. We are experiencing in the US what our government has forced onto poorer nations for decades, the accelerated selling off of our resources andprivatization of government services. This, combined with de-funding of public institutions, is creating greater wealth for a few while the rest of us struggle to make ends meet.

The looting class believes that there is no threat of democracy breaking out when people are poor and focused on meeting their basic needs. But economic democracy is quietly expanding throughout the United States. We are two of the organizers of the Economic Democracy Conference which is part of the Democracy Convention being held in Madison, WI beginning this August 7.

Two years ago when we organized a similar conference, economic democracy was beginning to take root in the U.S. Since then, the movement has grown rapidly, under the radar of the corporate media. One-third of the US public is now a member of some type of cooperative, including credit unions.

This year the Economic Democracy Conference will include 15 sessions. Some will focus on big picture topics such as what the new economy looks like and discussions of money and debt, while others will focus on the building blocks of the new economy, cooperatives, complementary currencies, public banks, affordable housing, local investment networks and other ways to finance local businesses and transitioning to municipal renewable energy. You can register here.

This week, there were a number of economic democracy projects in the news. In Seattle a group, Community Sourced Capital, formed to help people invest in their local community. We know the value of shopping locally, now people are figuring out ways to invest locally to build their communities and avoid Wall Street.

Also, some members of the Occupy Movement are launching the Occupy Money Cooperative. Their first product will be the Occupy Money Card, a pre-paid debit card without the costs of a regular bank account which they describe as a ‚Äúbank on a card.‚ÄĚ Forbes took notice of the Money Cooperative, finding it ironic that Occupy would set up a bank. We see it as just the opposite. More alternatives to Wall Street banks are needed and this is one of many models being developed.

In Minneapolis, people have solved one of the big problems caused by the Wall Street banks ‚Äď the housing crisis. They created an ‚Äúeviction free zone,‚ÄĚ as the world they want to see does not include throwing families onto the street. Their tactics include pressuring banks, blocking evictions (as with this example), occupying foreclosed homes and refurbishing homes. This kind of mutual support and local solidarity also builds community. The City of Richmond, CA became the first to use itspower of eminent domain to seize underwater homes facing foreclosure and return them to the homeowners with reduced mortgage payments.

And, an innovative approach to transit that began in Rochester, NY has now moved to Detroit. The approach seeks to expand public transit without increasing fares or taxes by improving the ‚Äėtransit experience,‚Äô rewarding drivers for performance and partnering with schools, hospitals and housing developments to supplement funding.

Strike Debt Bay Area is working to reverse the privatization of public services ‚Äď in this case, the US Post Office. Their approach is education, including a teach-in on privatization tactics used by the 1%, the dangers of privatization to individuals and public institutions, and the threats to civil liberties posed by the privatization of the United States Postal Service. Others are focused on ways the Post Office can expand and provide new services.

A lot of excellent work is being done to preserve water and healthy food. People are taking effective steps to stop corporations like Monsanto. This November there will be a vote in Washington State requiring labeling of GMO foods. If it succeeds, and it is leading right now, it could spur a national change that will allow people to finally know whether a product contains GMOs or not. On a related front, people are fighting for their right to buy directly from farmers,despite regulators‚Äô efforts to curtail the practice. And many individuals and municipalities are using a variety of techniques to preserve water and use it more efficiently.

As more Americans are joining efforts to stop the Trans-Pacific Partnership and its Atlantic trade cousin through groups like Flush The TPP, a new creative approach to trade came up this week that others may want to emulate. The Fair Deal Coalition concerned with our digital future, has launched an open source ‚Äúnegotiation‚ÄĚ of trade designed to give people what they want. They seek to involve people and businesses in developing the future, rather than the secret approach of the Obama administration.

This is just a brief review of what is occurring to build the new world we want. Much more is happening. In How to Design the World for Happiness, many more examples are described. Jay Walljasper writes in the introduction:

‚ÄúWe recognized it was up to us to make the neighborhood safer, cleaner, more inclusive, interesting, and enjoyable.‚Ä¶ Experiencing firsthand the collaborative capacity of everyday people to shape their own community has influenced me deeply as a writer, speaker, and consultant‚Ä¶. The articles gathered here explore the wide horizons of what‚Äôs possible in communities everywhere.‚ÄĚ

While there is a lot we can do as individuals, there is even more we can do when we build community and when we build on the experiences of others. The world we want to see is literally being built every day by uncounted numbers of us. There is no need to wait, the future is ours if we make it.

This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.